Question of the Week:  What is the thorn in your side that may remind you of St. Paul and his struggles

Fr. Glenn’s Pen,

I happened to be watching a few minutes of the television show House. The point of the series revolves around a particularly obnoxious doctor named House. He is a genius when it comes to diagnosing his patients. He is portrayed as having a towering intellect and yet his personal relations are heartless and inept if not down right mean.

In one scene a woman, who had been a drug addict and into the music scene in her not so distant past, has some obscure condition. She had made her decision to become a devout Jew recently. House’s assessment was that she was suffering under mental delusions and had serious problems in order to turn to religion, for he assumed and stated as though fact that religion was simply a myth and having no real meaning.

Pope Benedict in his book, Jesus of Nazareth refers to the subtle malevolence that is all around, he states, "Who could fail to see here a description of our world .. in which the Christian is threatened by an anonymous atmosphere, by "something in the air" that wants to make the faith seem ludicrous and absurd ..." I have said it many times and I don’t remember where I heard it but it is very true, "with faith no proof is necessary, without faith, no faith will be sufficient".

The readings this week point to a certain obstinacy or hardness of heart. For my part I must struggle against cynicism everyday. The culture of death seems to pervade our culture. Children are seen in terms of a commodity to be obtained or even terminated instead of a gift to be appreciated and nurtured and protected.

Being a Christian is not easy, Paul points to his own struggles with living the Christian faith. I can see in his struggles a reflection of my own. We all have our weaknesses and it is easy to be discouraged when so many in the world seem to be indifferent to the demands of the Gospel. Often their own indifference leads to their own unhappiness. Can not a parent relate to this when they see their own child being drawn into destructive behavior? Why is the human heart so stubborn to respond to God’s invitation to deep joy and happiness. Why are we so slow to embrace the truth which will lead to deep and abiding happiness.

Jesus Himself was not really accepted by those who lived in his home town. Friends pray for a pure heart, a heart that can see clearly, that will be quick to serve Christ and one another. Never let the forces that are "in the air" rob you of your joy and hope that comes from serving Christ.